A friend, Tash, requested that I write on this topic. It is one that is both odd and practical. She needs to catch a mouse. I guess the first question is whether or not she wants the mouse dead. I will assume that she wants it alive so I will suggest two methods.
Of course I
cannot even discuss mouse catching without being philosophical about it. I realize that mice represent carriers of
disease and pestilence to many. To
others mice are pets to be kept and appreciated. You see like so many things the feelings and
fate of a mouse is relative to our view of a mouse.
Once many
years ago I awoke to the sound of noise coming from my kitchen trash can. A small brown mouse had fallen into an almost
empty trash can. All that was in the
bottom was some flour. I was greeted by
the sight of a flour covered mouse blinking up at me and trying to jump out of
the trash bin.
I captured him
in an old margarine tub and transported him to a field far from our home. There he was set free to forage and dodge
owls. I hope he found other field mice
to take him into their care.
The point it
that we decide how we view those things that are weaker than we are. I do not want mice in my home but I do not
want to harm them just because I left my grass too long or some food caught the
mouse’s attention. So I choose live
traps and these two work well.
The first is
a commercial one that is baited with peanut butter. It looks like a house and costs about twelve dollars. It is manufactured by Seabright Laboratories. I have used it and it works fine. One must check it often or it can become
unsafe for the captured mouse.
The second
is home made. One uses a five gallon bucket,
a dowel, a soda can, and a ramp. The
picture is self-explanatory. The bait
for this is put on the soda can and again I use peanut butter. The mouse will crawl up the ramp and onto the
can where he slips off into the bucket.
I always put a little peanut butter in the bottom as a reward and to
sustain the mouse or mice until transport.
There you
have it. My two favorite ways for
catching mice without killing them. I
hope this helps my friend and reminds others
of how much I value all of creation. I
know it was a good reminder for me.
One Brown
Mouse
Smile your
little smile --- take some tea with me awhile.
Brush away
that black cloud from your shoulder.
Twitch your
whiskers. Feel that you're really real.
Another
tea-time --- another day older.
Puff warm
breath on your tiny hands.
You wish you
were a man
who every
day can turn another page.
Behind your
glass you sit and look
at my
ever-open book ---
One brown
mouse sitting in a cage.
Do you
wonder if I really care for you ---
Am I just
the company you keep ---
Which one of
us exercises on the old treadmill ---
Who hides
his head, pretending to sleep?
Smile your
little smile --- take some tea with me awhile.
And every
day we'll turn another page.
Behind our
glass we'll sit and look
at our
ever-open book ---
One brown
mouse sitting in a cage – Ian Anderson
Wishing you
joy in the journey,
Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So
Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of
Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new
and old things from his great treasure store."
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